Rolls-Royce shares have steamed ahead today after a jump in large engine deliveries helped the firm swing to a half-year profit.

The aircraft engine giant booked a pre-tax profit of £1.94billion for the six months ending in June, up from a £2.15billion loss over the same period last year.

Revenues climbed 12 per cent to £7.57billion, as the FTSE 100 firm cheered a 27 per cent rise in large engine deliveries in the civil aerospace sector.

The FTSE 100 firm cheered a 27 per cent rise in large engine deliveries in the civil aerospace

The company had been looking to shore up its performance after reporting its largest ever loss and one of the biggest in UK corporate history earlier this year.

Back in February Rolls Royce posted a pre-tax loss of £4.64billion for 2016 after a £4.4billion writedown caused by the collapse of the pound since the Brexit vote, as well as a £671million penalty to settle bribery allegations.

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But a cost-cutting plan and move to streamline Rolls' bloated manufacturing lines has started to pay off after swingeing cuts to management last November.

Chief executive Warren East said restructuring savings were ahead of schedule and it was on track to hit its profit targets.

East said: 'It's encouraging to see the effects of the transformation actually making a difference to the numbers and undoubtedly we are accelerating that transformation programme.

Chief executive Warren East said restructuring savings were ahead of schedule and it was on track to hit its profit targets

'Although we started it in 2016, the full effect is felt much more strongly now in 2017 as people started to operate with fewer individuals in certain job areas.'

He added: 'Together with a higher-than-expected benefit from long-term contract accounting adjustments, this resulted in a good set of results, with financial performance ahead of our expectations for the first half.

'Looking to the balance of the year, execution and delivery of a number of important milestones across our businesses will be key to achieving our full year expectations. Our outlook for full-year profit and cash remains unchanged.'

Shares this session have soared by 9 per cent, or 80.8p, at 974.0p. Yesterday investors dumped shares in engineer amid reported doubts over cash-flow targets.

Civil aerospace business was the stand-out performance, with half-year revenues rising 14%

Free cash flow - the measure of how much money the company generates after expenses and a key figure for Mr East - was negative £339million, meaning the company is spending more than it is making.

However, this was still an improvement on the figure a year ago, which was negative £414million.

East has repeatedly said that he wants Rolls to be generating £1billion of positive free cash flow by 2020.

The civil aerospace business was the stand-out performance, with half-year revenues rising 14 per cent to £3.68billion, helping to offset a 4 per cent drop in defence aerospace to £1.05billion.

Its nuclear arm also recorded a solid performance, with revenues rising 8 per cent to £391million for the half-year.

It said research and development spending rose to £411million over the six-month period, up from £378million last year.

The company revealed in June that it would safeguard more than 7,000 jobs by making its biggest single investment in the UK in over a decade.

The move will see it drive £150million over the next few years into new and existing civil aerospace facilities across the East Midlands, including creating a new facility at its historic site in Derby for the testing of large civil aero engines.

Michael van Dulken, at Accendo Markets, said: 'Investors are relieved at the implication that earnings will be better balanced this year, in other words slightly less skewed towards the second half.

'An upgrade of sorts that offers potential for a bullish revision to FY guidance later in the year and/or a surprise beat of FY guidance.

'More importantly it suggests the turnaround strategy is working and quashes some of yesterday’s cash-flow concerns, although the CFO does caution that some first half benefits may not necessarily be repeated and that headwinds continue to blow.'